This invention relates to the relief of pain by the application of pressure to selected points on the body.
There has been a small number of devices previously patented in the field of acupressure and acupuncture therapy for a variety of purposes, among them treatment of a variety of physiologic abnormalities, but these devices have been designed and intended for use in very specific ways. For example, for use in such treatment by application of a pressure-application device of specific design such that it would be applied only to the ear or to the finger of human beings; or for use in stopping the flow of blood at a sampling-needle puncture site in kidney-dialysis patients so that it did not present a hazard to their successful treatment by that modality. Refer to U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,122,852, 4,319,574, and 4,182,338 and to the patents to which they refer, respectively, for further information on the subject.
This invention relates to a method of relief of pain by the use of a device which presses on any of a number of points at a variety of locations on the body which are commonly used for relief of pain in acupuncture and/or acupressure therapy practice and which acts to produce a highly-localized self-induced massage which brings relief of pain at some point in the body not necessarily at the point being treated.
Acupuncture therapy for the relief of pain has been practiced by the Chinese for some 2,000 years with a good safety record and an excellent success record, even when practiced by illerate lay personnel. However, acupuncture is an invasive technique, and one which thus leaves the recipient open to introduction of pathogenic organisms. Thus, despite its well-documented success as a treatment for a variety of physiologic conditions, among them pain, it is not completely suitable for use by the lay population.
Acupressure therapy for the relief of pain has been practiced by the Chinese for some 4,000 years, however, with an excellent safety record and an equally-good success record. And it has the advantage of being a non-invasive technique, thus eliminating the possibility of introduction of pathogenic organisms into the recipient. Acupressure therapy, then, being a form og highly-localized massage, is emminently more suitable for use by lay personnel for the relief of pain.
In a number of species of mammals, a number of points commonly used in both acupuncture and in acupressure therapy are relatively close to the surface of the body, and thus are easily worked on to effect some measure of relief from pain from any of a variety of causes; for example, arthritises.
In equines, for example, such pain can render an animal very difficult to work on, for both the veterinarian and the farrier. Methods traditionally used to make the animal stand quietly have been the use of tranquilizing drugs, and/or the use of a device commonly referred to as a "twtich", which provides considerable pain in either the nose of ear area which focusses the animal's attention on the twitched area and renders the animal immobile to some extent through its desire to avoid further intensifying the pain from the twitch.
Such methods are either decidedly inhumane or have some degree of danger associated with them from possible negative reaction of the animal to the subsituted pain or from anaphylactic shock or from the introduction of pathogenic organisms when the tranquilizing drug is administered (since such administration is usually done by injection in animals).
In humans, relief of pain and subsequent restoration of even partial freedom of movement (regardless of the cause of the pain) is the paramount consideration. Twitching is not done in humans, but administration of tranquilizing and/or pain-blocking drugs is, and it has some degree of risk associated with it, both from the possibility of physiologic reaction and, when administration is done either by injection or intravenous tube, from the possibility of introduction of pathogenic organisms.
In traditional acupuncture therapy, a skilled technician has had to remain in attendance, both in human and in non-human practice. Additionally, it has been known for a long time that repeated and extended use of points will result eventually in what is referred to as "acupuncture point fatigue", after which time such fatigued points respond considerably less well to further acupuncture therapy. Refer to U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,122,852 and 4,319,474 and to the patents which they cite as references for further information on this subject. Due to the need for complete relaxation of the muscles of the recipient at the time of needle placement, self-therapy by acupuncture has not been considered very feasible, not to mention the previously-referred-to potential for infection.
In traditional acupressure therapy, a technician has had to remain in attendance in order to provide the needed pressure(s). In humans, this is not always necessary, but the need to remain in a contorted or cramped position made self-therapy difficult or uncomfortable. In veterinary situations, the need for such an extra person is often difficult to fulfill. Additionally, the technician would have to remain in a cramped position for an extended period of time in order to work on the desired points in certain instances. Too, the number of points which can be simultaneously acupressured is limited to how many the technician can manipulate with two hands, both in human and in veterinary medicine. In humans, for example, well over 349 points, located all over the body. are known and used, many of simultaneously. Refer to the books "THE HEALING BENEFITS OF ACUPRESSURE" by F. M. Houston, D.C., and "ACUPUNCTURE MANUAL, A Western Approach" by Luke S. W. Chu, M.D., Samuel D. J. Yeh, M.D., and Denise D. Wood for further information on the subject. In animals, well over 100 points are known to exist for the equine alone, and similar points exist for other animals. Refer to "VETERINARY ACUPUNCTURE" by Alan M. Klide, D.V.M. and Shiu H. Kung, Ph.D. for further information on the subject.
In non-human situations, the simple presence of an extra body can make working around the animal more difficult for the veterinarian and/or the farrier, due to the size of the animal and the fact that conditions in barns are often somewhat restricted when comparing the size of the animal and the space in which it is kept; e.g., stalls and aisles.